Best Laid Plans
by Javanyet
Summary: Even when a raid goes right, some things can go so wrong. - reposted, taken down for 1 year per zine publication agreement. Events happen after Lessons, and before everything else.
1. Termites and ordnance

When Caleb had wisely noted during the noon meeting "It's not the best idea to send our top two organizers _and _both of our 'freelance consultants' out on the same raid," there had been a silent moment. Sending Mike, Julie, Ham and Chris together into a possible battle could conceivably leave them leaderless and without the useful connections and resources – not to mention training and strategy assistance – they'd only just achieved. A wise idea it was of course, but it raised the kind possibilities that none of them liked to consider. Taking one's own risk was one thing, but thinking about another's... well, that gave them pause.

"Julie, why don't you stay here this time," Ruby suggested. When Julie was about to protest, Ruby added archly, "You make better coffee than any of those tough guys. And if Willie and Angie are going to get to work right away, they're going to need _lots _of coffee."

Willie corrected, "I do not drink coffee, Ruby."

"Good, more for me," Angie declared.

According to the plan Mike, Caleb, Chris, and Ham would park the "custom mercenary" van around the corner, where the hedges and ornamental trees would provide some cover. Ruby, who would be "working" at the party, would take the passes from the safe in the upstairs study while she was "tidying up", and at the appointed time pass them to Donovan through a window in the wine cellar (after disconnecting its alarm jack). She had a fifteen second window of time to reconnect the alarm and return to work. Twenty minutes later she would return to the wine cellar and take back the passes, returning them to the safe later in the evening. She knew from her frequent presence in the house and from overhearing the many conversations between various Visitors and members of the household that the safe was seldom opened except to take out the passes at times of Visitor events that required them. If any trouble arose, Ham and Chris would offer firepower backup.

* * *

In the new rebel camp, the Old West existed cheek by jowl with a 1930's auto repair garage and a full-length, modern Amtrak passenger train that had been converted to housing as more rebels joined the camp. In the small compartment she and Angie now shared, Ruby was putting the finishing touches on her "work" makeup when she heard a knock at the door. She barely paused as she glanced in the mirror to see who was there.

"Why Mr. Tyler, what can I do for you? I believe your friend is still hard at work with Willie."

"Which is where she belongs. Okay if I come in for a minute?"

"Of course. I hope you don't mind if I continue 'fixing my face'." Ruby continued to apply a little nose putty and foundation, and darkened her eyebrows to match the wig she'd be putting on.

"It looks just fine to me," Tyler assured her with a smile as he sat down on a nearby chair. He liked Ruby; she was as straight-up as they came. She knew exactly what she was doing and what the risks were, and the reasons she did them she didn't need to explain to anyone. He'd heard she was handy with an Uzi as well, and that really impressed him.

She returned his smile in the mirror. "Now Mr. Tyler, you didn't come here to charm an old lady."

"I'll charm whoever I can." He let her finish her makeup before he continued. "I don't think I have to ask you if you're clear on everything for tonight."

She turned in her chair. "You're right, you don't. So why _are _you here?"

"Maybe I wanted to remind you to be careful." She gave him a narrow look so he noted, "I guess you don't believe I have it in me, do you?" Why should she? He was beginning to wonder himself why he'd come when she put her hand on his arm.

"I believe you have a great deal in you that people don't see because they don't bother to look closely enough. Though I suppose in your line of work that's for the best, isn't it? That must be why you try so hard to be _stern _and _forbidding_."

"It usually works," he noted wryly.

"I'm sorry to hear that," Ruby admitted with a sigh, and squeezed Ham's arm briefly before letting go. "People deserve to have someone who'll bother to look closely enough to see what they have in them. Even you, Mr. Tyler, no matter what you've done that you wish you hadn't. Maybe you should try harder to know when to," she gestured at the table strewn with cosmetics, "remove the makeup?"

Understanding her perfectly, Ham regarded Ruby with an open expression. "I'm working on it Ruby. I'll let you know how it goes."

"I think Angie will, too." Ruby laughed at Ham's sudden awkwardness. "Why, you look just like a young man who's snuck in after curfew." When he relaxed, and even looked a bit sheepish, she suggested gently, "You both deserve to have someone who bothers to look closely enough to see what you have 'in you'. The way things are now, to waste any chance for that would be tragic."

They regarded one another silently for a moment, the hardened mercenary and the determined old lady, then Ham surprised Ruby by leaning down and kissing her cheek.

"Like I said, I'll let you know how it goes. We'll be watching your back tonight."

When he'd left Ruby settled her wig on her head, and her kerchief on top of that. "That makes two of us," she declared, and gathered her things to leave.

* * *

Julie set two mugs of fresh coffee on the table in the makeshift computer lab at the back of the saloon and sat down with Willie and Angie.

Angie was itching to jump on the copied passes as soon as the raiding party brought them back. She looked at her recently-acquired watch for the tenth time in the past few hours. Or maybe it was minutes.

"How long do these things usually take?"

Julie pushed the mug closer to her. "As long as they take. And no, you don't get used to it." She patted Angie's arm. "They've done this kind of thing a lot, they'll be back before you know it." _My lips to God's ears, _she added silently.

_She thinks I'm angsting over Tyler_, Angie thought to herself. She'd be ashamed to admit she wasn't all that concerned about his welfare; from what she knew so far he could do this kind of thing in his sleep, though she figured he wouldn't even blink until it was over. No, she was terrified that what she'd learned in her work with Willie regarding the symbolism of the Visitor language and its modification according to the context it was applied in – everyday, scientific, strategic – would evaporate from her brain if she waited too long to use it. Never mind that Willie would be right here to help, Angie _wanted _to use this new information right away to hardwire it into her memory as soon as possible. It had been a lifetime since she'd learned something absolutely new, and she was loving that, in spite of the situation.

"Sure, I just want to get _started_," Angie drummed her fingers on the table in frustration. She'd already drunk more coffee in the past few hours than she usually drank in several days, and it was beginning to show.

"Perhaps you should switch to decow," Willie suggested helpfully.

"_Huh?_" She'd been doing pretty well with Willie's tenuous grasp of English, but in Angie's currently wired-yet-exhausted state this one had her stumped.

"I think he means 'decaf'," Julie covered her smile politely. "Right, Willie?"

He nodded. "Coffee, without caffeine."

"Decaf, not 'decow'", Angie agreed with a wide grin. "That's okay Willie, your English puts my grasp of your language to shame." She looked at the mug and pushed it away. "And point taken."

* * *

Several hours later Willie had gone to feed the lab animals and Julie was checking in with Robert regarding the latest tests for a chemical agent that would affect the Visitors. Angie was nearly dozing at the table, and started so violently she almost tipped her chair over when Ham stormed in and slammed two copied passes on the table.

"Here," he glowered in a hard voice, "they'd better be worth it." He stomped out without another word, shoving past Donovan, Chris, and Caleb. Julie was running down the hall toward them, and as she passed Tyler she knew something had gone very wrong.

Angie was out of her seat. "What was that about?" She examined the passes, noting that the different colors denoted two security levels. "What did he mean, 'worth it'?"

She could see Donovan talking quietly with Julie, whose eyes widened as she covered her mouth with a gasp, then leaned her head on Donovan's shoulder. Chris looked grim faced, saying nothing as Caleb approached Angie. His stricken look made her feel queasy.

"What?" she asked. "You're all here, the passes are here, it must have gone okay, right?"

He was shaking his head. "Everything went as planned, Ruby got the passes and passed them to Donovan, and we got them copied and he got them back to her. But someone must have followed her back to the wine cellar the second time. Donovan heard someone yell 'what's going on there?' and Ruby told him to run, and slammed the window shut before he could try to get her out. He saw a disruptor flash, heard Ruby scream, and saw a couple more flashes. Then he ran like hell back to us, and we had to get out."

"Were you followed?" Julie asked as she came into the room, wiping her eyes.

"I don't think so," Caleb told her, "it looks like Ruby bought just enough time for Mike to get away clean, and after that they probably were all over the wine cellar looking for what was happening. They'll find the passes on her, but they'll probably think she didn't get a chance to hand them off to anyone."

Angie was out of breath, as if she'd been running for miles. "Are you _sure_ they got Ruby?" The words sounded stupid even as she heard them leave her mouth.

"Yeah, Angie," Caleb told her, "no way she could have gotten out. There's nothing anyone could have done."

Angie strode past Caleb, Julie and Donovan and caught up with Chris, who was headed outside to return the contents of the van to storage. She grabbed his sleeve to stop him.

"What did he mean, 'they'd better be worth it'?" she demanded. "I didn't know this would happen!"

The big man's face was sadly understanding. "Nobody did. But he's taking it hard, I guess Ruby struck him special."

"Where is he?" She wanted to see him, to explain she didn't _know _this would happen.

Chris shook his head. "Leave him alone, Angie, he'll work it out himself. He always does."

To be honest, he didn't think it was a good idea for her to be around Ham until he _did _work it out. Things would get said that had no business being heard, and she'd be standing right in the line of fire.

Angie couldn't get it out of her head, the look on Tyler's face as he'd thumped the passes on the table in front of her. He looked… _hateful_. As if she'd bet Ruby's life on this, on purpose. She ran down the hall into the front room of the saloon and out into the street. After a moment's thought she knew where she'd find him, and headed for the munitions shed.

* * *

"It wasn't my fault." _If I say it out loud, maybe more than once, I might really believe it._

As she waited for Tyler to tell her "I didn't say it was," something told her not to get too close to where he stood with his back to her, cleaning his gun. The parts were laid out in front of him, the cleaning brushes and rag and oil all in their places. From what she could see his hands were moving automatically, his head and back immobile. He hadn't even taken off his jacket. She stayed put in the doorway.

"You know I only planned this to _help_." _God, it sounds like I'm begging._

He didn't turn, rigid as stone. Only his hands continued to move, cleaning one part at a time.

"They _had _a plan, and they'd used it before."

"But they'd have been _looking _for forged passes this time! You all agreed to that, and it was to minimize the risk, not increase it."

"Tell that to Ruby. If we ever find her body."

Angie inhaled a sharp gasp, as if he'd punched her. "Ham, I wanted to _help_."

Tyler stopped cleaning the gun part he had in his hands, put it down and raised both hands slightly as if to keep from throwing everything in reach across the room.

"You wanted to show off. You wanted to do it from the 'inside'. Well maybe if you had the guts to get _outside _the computer room and do it from the _out_side, and not fix what wasn't broken, nobody would have gotten killed tonight. And don't feel pressured to use my first name, we're not in bed now." His voice was colder and meaner than even the first time they'd met, when he'd shot up her car and nearly killed her.

"Fuck you, Tyler," she spat, in as cold a voice as she could manage. She wanted to sound as mean as he did, but that was beyond her reach right now because she couldn't help thinking he was right. As always, she'd waited to crunch the data while other people were putting their lives on the line. And losing them, while she lived to crunch data another day.

"Not now, I'm busy." He picked up another gun part and went on cleaning.

When she turned to escape Tyler's quiet rage she collided with Chris Farber. He didn't say anything, but his eyes said "I told you so." He stepped aside to let her pass and walked into the room to stand a few feet behind Tyler.

"That was harsh and ugly, brother."

"It's a harsh and ugly night."

"You remember starting special ops, that lecture on infiltration? You laughed your ass off and said a well-placed chunk of C4 and a good bulldozer can knock down more real estate than infiltration."

Silence from his partner, so he went on.

"And that special ops guy, what, fifteen years in even then? He said termites have knocked down more real estate than all the ordnance and bulldozers in history. Termites, man, they work quieter than ordnance, but they get the job done. Better, sometimes. They soften things up for the knockdown. What Angie's doing ain't no different than what Ruby did. You got no reason to stomp on her."

Still no answer from Tyler, but his hands were resting flat on the table.

"I'll finish up," Chris told him. "You take a walk."

As Tyler turned from the table and walked out he pressed Farber's shoulder briefly in passing.

"Don't mention it, bro," Chris told him as he set to work finishing the cleanup.


	2. Something worthwhile

Willie had just finished checking on the last iguana. He'd filled their water dishes and made sure the kale, spinach and cabbage were chopped and ready in the small cooler for the morning feeding, and that their heat lamps were set at the right level. He'd also checked the water in the rat cages but left the more particular details to be taken care of by the others, to avoid temptation. He'd been working on weaning himself from live prey, if for no other reason than to make his new companions more comfortable.

The sudden rush and halt of footsteps in the outer hallway caught Willie's attention. At this late hour it was unusual for the humans to be abroad in the area of the building called "saloon" that was reserved for scientific purposes. The computer lab had been abandoned an hour or so earlier after the raiding party had returned. Willie had been deeply saddened to learn of Ruby's death. She had treated him kindly, when even the most open-minded of the others had remained suspicious. She had been the most comforting presence he had felt since Harmony's death, and he would miss her.

"Who is there?" he asked hesitantly. Willie wasn't armed; the severe Mr. Tyler had successfully argued against that for the time being, anyway. If the intruder meant harm to any of them Willie wouldn't be much help except to speak to any fellow Visitor in his native language.

"Just me, Willie."

"Angie," Willie acknowledged with great relief. "It is late. Our work with the passes need not begin until tomorrow…" he checked his chronometer. It wasn't quite 11 pm. As she entered the animal lab Angie's distraught expression was obvious. "What is wrong?"

"Shit, Willie, what's _right_?"

He puzzled over this for a minute. "I am sorry, Angie, I do not understand your question."

Angie walked into the lab and paused by the rabbit cage. "Is it okay if I pick one up?"

"Yes, those animals are not engaged in any experiments yet."

She opened the cage and carefully lifted out one of the smaller of the three rabbits. It wiggled a bit until she had it firmly supported in both hands, then relaxed against her. Stroking its soft fur and delicate ears she mused, "I wonder if they know why they're here."

"I think, like us, they know where they are only."

"But we know _more_, we plan, don't we? We try to figure it all out, and get around it, and make it work to our advantage."

Willie thought for a moment. "I think I understand. I did not mean that we have no thoughts outside of the present, like these animals. I mean that we may live this moment only. We cannot live the future."

"Willie, do you think we're doing the right thing?" Angie asked with a pleading look. "I mean what I came up with and what Robert and Julie agreed to, that maybe a better way to approach this is from the inside, from knowledge and not blind attack?" Willie looked a little sad then, and Angie felt guilty for asking. "I'm not asking the best way to kill your people. Just the best way to end this."

He nodded. "I know that many humans wish to kill all of my fellow beings, my 'people', for what we have done. But we have weapons far more powerful than yours. To fight only, as your friend Mr. Tyler wishes, may succeed. But at great cost. The way you and I are working on together may kill less, on both sides. We are not alone with this idea. There are humans I have heard in my time here who think this. And those of my kind who do, too, and are organizing."

Angie interrupted before he could continue. "Willie, did you notice? Your English was almost perfect."

"I am hapless to know that."

"_Happy_, Willie. You're happy."

"Yes." He paused, then told her, "But you are not. You are sad for Ruby."

"Yeah, Willie. I'm sad for Ruby. Everybody is." She snuggled the rabbit for a minute longer, hiding her tears in its fur, then returned it to its cage. "Willie, how did you learn to deal with all of this? How long did it take for you to adjust to this new… _everything_?" If he could do it, having left not just a home but a whole world, she thought she could, too.

He gazed at her in frank confusion. "I have not. When I learn the answer, I will tell you."

She sighed. "Okay. Thanks."

As she walked away Willie called after her, "Angie? Please do not take blame for tonight." When she turned and stared he added, "We did not hurt Ruby. Those who wish to conquer earth did."

She forced a smile. "Sure, Willie. See you tomorrow."

Angie went back to her sleeping quarters. There were still a few theatrical cosmetics left on the small built-in table in the corner. She sat in the chair in front of the mirror, wanting to resent the blame that Tyler had poured out in that chill voice. The problem was, she knew in a way he was right.

"I'm sorry, Ruby, I'm so sorry," she told the empty clothes on the hook next to her, "I just wanted to _help_." But nobody was there to hear.

* * *

Tyler slowed his pace as soon as he'd left the small building that served as the armory. Termites, shit, why did Farber have to remind him of that? Dumping the blame on Angie was easy, it had been her plan. Well, that wasn't quite true. It had been _his _plan, his and Donovan's. Angie and Willie had planned what to do with the passes, and the rest of the key rebel leaders had agreed. But how to get them had been his plan, and Donovan's. And Ruby thought it was a good one, she'd readily volunteered for her part in the operation, and was the most logical choice anyway. It should have worked. _It should have worked._ How many times had that been said in the past, when the operation had been a success but someone had died? The plan had worked. Someone who had known the risk had paid the price. Termites, shit… how many people like Ruby had done their thing and gotten away with it? Plenty. More than hadn't, really. 'Perfect' wasn't ever part of the plan, but perfect was what Tyler always demanded of himself, he _needed _it, even when he didn't expect it. And when perfect didn't happen, he looked for someone to blame. He tried to stay on his own until the urge passed, and he imagined Chris had tried to hold Angie off, but already he knew her well enough to know she'd have ignored it because she had to talk sense to him.

_Fucking librarians, computer geeks and intellectuals, they always expect things to make sense. Welcome to the New World, Angel._

As he knocked on the open door-frame Tyler tried not to remember the last time he'd done that, just hours ago.

Angie was sitting cross-legged on one of the fold-down beds in the compartment, staring at the floor. Her eyes were red and swollen and dry as a bone. Her hair was done up in pigtails and she was wearing those goofy rabbit pajamas that never got used at the cabin. She looked confused and beaten down, and he wanted so badly to touch her his stomach hurt. As if _that_ could make up for anything. She didn't even look up. He knocked once more and asked, "Okay if I come in?"

"Go ahead. Plenty of room here now."

"Angie," Tyler began, not knowing exactly what to say.

"Oh, my_ first _name. I guess you're not busy anymore." She was still trying to sound as mean as he had, but it was no contest.

What he saw and heard in her was _wounded_, not just by him but by Ruby's absence, by her own doubts. And of course he'd seen the weak spot amid those doubts, and jumped on it with both feet because… who the fuck knew. She was handy, that's all. _Nice work, Tyler. Fixer, my ass._

She continued to stare at the floor. "Since it looks like you're not in the mood to continue your little lecture, I'll do it for you. I hide in the computer room while other people do the dirty stuff, the dangerous stuff, the stuff that _counts_." She threw up her hands as if admitting it to the world. "I'm obsessed with being clever while other people die. I checked out books to Elmer Fudd, and my friends in the Resistance died. I lived in fantasy-land with David like nothing else existed, and he died. I drove away when things got ugly, and _everyone_ died. Hell, at least I'm _consistent_."

"Stop it." Ham took a step into the room. "I'm sorry. I knew just where to slip the knife in and I did it because you were there and it was easy, no other reason. Take your best shot, I earned it."

Finally Angie looked at Tyler, but briefly. "Why be sorry? Like I said, you were right."

"Uh-uh." Ham shook his head and knelt on the floor in front of her. Now she was staring off somewhere over his shoulder. "Lookat me, will you?" He took her face in his hands more roughly than he wanted to, because he had to make her look at him and she didn't want to. "_Look_ at me. I'm _pissed off_, because of the war and because of old ladies getting shot by lizards, and because of librarians who have to learn to be commandos," his voice was bitter, and Angie tried to back away but he wouldn't let her. "I'm angry as _hell _but it's not about you, _and it wasn't your fault_."

He knew she could see the rage in his eyes and that it scared her even though he was telling her it wasn't her fault. He _was_ angry, he still felt the rage boil down deep, but when he pulled her toward him and felt her face contract under his fingers he knew for damn sure whose fault _that_ was. On top of everything else, now he was making her scared of him.

"No, Angie." He stopped still, and his grip gentled. "No." He leaned his forehead against hers and the anger seemed to cool as if she'd drawn it out of him.

"I'm _sorry_," Angie told him urgently, "you know I wanted..." She couldn't finish because he interrupted with a whispered "Ssh" so she'd stop trying to convince him of what he already knew. She nodded okay.

He sat back on his heels. "How about I stay a while." No question mark. He made it sound like he was doing it for her, but the truth was he needed to feel like less of an asshole. _Let me do a little more penance, Angel. _When she nodded, the ache in his gut subsided a little.

He shed his jacket and shoes, dropped them in a corner. Angie gestured vaguely. "Not much room in here, I guess."

"I'll manage," he smiled, and reached behind him to shut the door. "C'mere." She went to him, but when he pulled her into a long kiss he could feel Angie start to tremble as if she were about to collapse. He stopped and looked closely at her, and knew those red rimmed dry eyes would be running with tears if she hadn't used them all up already. Tyler felt like an asshole all over again as he realized the last thing he should be thinking of right now was another marathon session of therapeutic sex and self-indulgence.

"I'm sorry," Angie muttered. Having him make love to her would be a welcome distraction… as long as she didn't have to give anything back. But they were surrounded by Ruby's things, and Angie couldn't stop thinking about her, and no matter who told her it wasn't her fault, she couldn't stop _thinking _about how it wouldn't have happened if only...

He interrupted her wandering thoughts. "It's okay." But the trembling got worse, and she shrugged miserably in disagreement.

Whispering softy, "C'mere," Tyler drew Angie down with him to stretch out on the narrow drop-down bed, his back pressed to the wall. He wrapped around her, arms and legs, the palm of one hand supporting her cheek and the other arm snug around her waist, hand spread on her stomach, thumb rubbing back and forth, "Easy, now, relax, breathe."

Angie felt his every breath, and before long her own breathing settled into synch. The trembling that had seized her diminished, and she relaxed and let herself be supported completely, surrounded by him. This was wrong, this wasn't _her_, she didn't want to be held and shushed like a baby by someone who'd verbally beaten her black and blue less than an hour before.

But he felt _so good_, the soft cotton sweater where she gripped his arm, the hard muscle of his shoulder against the back of her head, and the way his legs were scissored around hers, his socks warming her bare feet where they couldn't quite burrow under the afghan (Ruby's afghan) at the end of the bed. As she relaxed Ham eased his grip on her, still wrapped around her but not as tightly. She didn't want this, she didn't want to _need _this, not from him. Not from anyone, not anymore..

After a while she pulled away and sat up, and immediately felt his hand spread on her back: warm, this thumb moving back and forth.

"Better?" he asked.

"Yeah."

Tyler reached up and gave the back of her neck a squeeze. "No wonder you like to keep your mouth shut; you're a lousy liar." When she didn't reply he let go. "Never mind. When my mouth starts swinging it can take a while for the bruises to heal." He rubbed the back of her head and added, "I'm _sorry_, Angel. I didn't say it just to get into your pants."

Now she turned to look down at him. "You _didn't _get into my pants."

"See?" he smiled up at her. He sat up, looked her closely in the eye. "We good?"

"Yeah." Angie sighed, and touched his face. It seemed to surprise him, but he didn't pull back. She traced the scar on his left temple. "I used to wonder where you got that, but I think I got it figured out."

He responded with a knowing smirk and invited, "Why don't you tell me."

"I think," she gave him a push so he turned and sat sideways with his back to the wall, then straddled his lap facing him, "that's where a random, unplanned, non-strategized thought tried to get in. Oh, you fought it off..." she was very serious in spite of his obvious amusement, "but it left its mark."

"Bar fight," Tyler corrected. "But good guess." He used both hands to brush her pigtails back over her shoulders, then dropped them to his sides. They sat there for a minute or two, regarding each other calmly and without comment.

"I don't know about you, Tyler," Angie finally observed with a hint of weariness, "but I get the feeling we're kind of stuck with each other."

He nodded, looking thoughtful. "Should I be worried?"

"'Worried'? _I'm_ not the one with a truckload of explosives."

Suddenly Ham began to scan the tiny room as if searching for something.

"What are you _looking_ for?" she asked.

"Lamps," he deadpanned. "You damn near killed Sascha with that lamp. A man can't be too careful, even one with a truckload of explosives."

Angie blew out an exasperated snort and started to climb off Tyler's lap, but he stopped her.

"Don't you dare get up."

In spite of his wiseass tone Angie saw something deep in the dark eyes that she hadn't been paying attention to, something that probably had had a lot to do with the nasty things he'd said to her.

"It wasn't your fault, either," she told him gently. His smile faded and his eyes were so round and solemn that Angie kissed him between them, like he did to her sometimes, and pulled his head to her shoulder. She thought he might resist such direct comfort, but he surprised her by hugging her around the waist and drawing a deep breath, then releasing it in a rush like someone who'd had to stand up for a long time and was finally getting a chance to sit down and rest.

"You know what Ruby told me?" she continued, "That it was no surprise for two people in such a desperate situation to find something worthwhile in each other."

"Ruby was a smart lady." Tyler's voice was muffled against Angie's shoulder until he turned his head to plant a kiss on her neck. "Okay if I stay?"

Angie looked down at him. "You don't have to. I'm okay."

"Well to be honest," Ham explained with a doubtful expression, "bunking with Farber could be a little hairy tonight… he's not exactly pleased with how I mouthed off at you back there. I'd rather be cramped for space than get lectured all night. Besides," he locked his arms tighter around her waist, pressed his face under her ching and inhaled deeply, "you smell a lot better."

"Mmm, okay." Angie got up to shut off the light and give Tyler room to get undressed, but he only took off his belt and sweater, leaving his t shirt and jeans. "You expecting trouble?" she wanted to know.

He shook his head and lay down again, reaching an arm out to beckon her. "C'mere." She thought of what a chore it was going to be to get his clothes peeled off in such tight quarters (she knew too well he was not inclined to help), but figured she'd get a start on herself and unbuttoned the top of her flannel pj's.

"Uh-uh," he stopped her hands and took a look at her where she sat next to him on the bed. With those braids and flannel pajamas, even with her top halfway undone he realized he just couldn't get into it. "Don't take it personally, but I can _not_ seduce a woman who's wearing pigtails and bunny rabbit pj's without feeling like a bigger pervert than I am already." He buttoned her top up almost all the way. "Besides, in a place this size somebody could get hurt." She sat staring at him, completely confused. That had been happening a lot lately. "Don't look so insulted, c'mere," he pulled her down and spooned her back against him, wrapping his arms around her and tucking his legs up behind hers, and reached down to pull Ruby's afghan over them. "You warm enough?" he asked her solicitously.

God he felt so _good_, Angie didn't know if she'd ever stop noticing that as if it were new each time. "Yeah," she murmured, and settled back against him. "Who knew there were snuggly mercenaries?" she asked sleepily.

"Careful," he warned her, "I have a reputation to protect." When she laughed he nuzzled the nape of her neck. "Nice," he breathed.

* * *

The next day the rebels gathered outside for a memorial for Ruby. Father Andrew spoke a eulogy as the camp members joined hands... with the exception of Chris Farber and a hard-faced Ham Tyler, whose hands were resolutely jammed in his pockets. Angie Harper stood between them, and nobody but Mike Donovan noticed her right hand sharing Tyler's jacket pocket with his left, discreetly withdrawn as the rebels said "amen" and returned to the business of war.

"C'mon, Willie, we got work to do," Angie called to Willie, and the two of them went to the computer lab to get started on the pass analysis.

As he and Tyler headed to the munitions shed to finish counting up the inventory remaining after last night's raid, Donovan observed bitterly, "I know we didn't fuck up, and I know Ruby did exactly what she wanted to do. But goddamn it, she deserved better."

Tyler glanced back to catch a glimpse of Angie as she trudged wearily by Willie's side.

"Don't we all, Gooder. Just don't expect to get it anytime soon."


End file.
